Moongodi

Moongodi

Last week, I was reading a book about Rajasthani cuisine. I was quite intrigued by the various techniques and aspects of cooking mentioned in it. One thing that piqued my interest was that due to Rajasthan being an arid state, the natives do not use a lot of water to prepare food. Moongodi is one such dish, or rather an ingredient. They are sundried, small round lentil drops made from a thick paste of Moong Dal. They are a rich source of protein and very easy to digest. The Moongodi recipe that I have described does not make use of much oil, and is thus healthy. I have refrained from using onion (pyaaz) and garlic (lahsan) in the dish, as the flavour of Moongodi can get easily overpowered by it. These tiny nuggets can also be fried and kept in an airtight container for a month, to be used later. It should be noted that Moongodis are inedible without cooking. They should be cooked in a sauce or gravy, as they tend to soak up the flavour and become tender and juicy. I have used some spices, water and oil here to prepare thin gravy. These spices can be added according to taste. Vegetables like potato (aloo) can also be added to the dish to make it more exciting. Moongodi tastes yummy with Bajra ki Roti. These little drops of sunshine will surely tickle your taste buds.